The suit accuses Williams and Cooper of intentional indifference to the situation, fraud, "intentional infliction of emotional distress," and Cooper of retaliation for restricting Vilma Hascall's husband, James Hascall, from visiting the school, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also accuses Urbana's school board of fraud, intentional infliction of emotional distress and basic negligence.

Smith is seeking more than $50,000 in damages, he said.

"It's been reported to the school, the superintendent and the school board, and nothing has been done," Smith said. "We have subsequently found out that there are other families in the same situation. The desired outcome is that we want something done to stop the bullying."

On Monday, Collinsville attorney Dennis Weedman, whose firm, Robbins, Schwartz, Nicholas, Lifton & Taylor Ltd. represents the school district, said he can't comment on the content of the lawsuit because it would violate student confidentiality and the Family Education Rights and Privacy Act.

He said the school district plans to respond by asking the court to dismiss the complaint.

"We have 30 days to do that," Weedman said.

The suit alleges that Hascall's daughter, now a fourth-grader at Thomas Paine, has been bullied since kindergarten by the same group of girls.

Now a fourth-grader, she has missed 10 days of school this year and doesn't want to go to school because she's being bullied, the lawsuit said. Since this fall, she has also had trouble sleeping and nightmares, along with "physical illness to include stomachaches, headaches and worsening of her asthma, mental anguish and significant emotional distress."

The situation started then as name-calling and teasing and escalated in 2008-09, when the girl was in second grade, to hair-pulling and putting items in the girl's hair.

The next year, the name-calling and hair-pulling continued, and the other girls started threatening Hascall's daughter during recess.

This school year, the behavior continued, and Hascall's daughter would spend her recess time hiding from the other girls. She also started having more asthma attacks, a condition she had been diagnosed with in first grade. Hascall contacted Cooper last August, the lawsuit states, asking that her daughter be moved to a different classroom. Hascall also requested a meeting with Cooper, Williams, the police and the other girls' parents last August, which the lawsuit said Williams denied, adding that the school district would contact the parents.

Last October, Hascall's daughter had an asthma attack, and the other girls followed her into the bathroom and blocked her so she couldn't leave. Hascall called Urbana police, and the next day, the lawsuit said, Cooper called her, saying she would call the other girls' parents.

In November, one girl slapped a book Hascall's daughter was holding, according to the lawsuit, and when Hascall's daughter went to the bathroom, three girls followed her, kicked open a bathroom stall door, hitting the girl, and threatened to kill her.

Hascall called the police again, who contacted the other girls' parents. Those parents said they had never heard about the situation, according to the lawsuit.

Cooper also told Urbana police she had no knowledge of Hascall's daughter being bullied until last October.

During a November meeting at the school, Cooper told James Hascall and another parent she "felt it wasn't necessary to inform parents of the situation," according to the lawsuit, and "felt it was just girls being girls."

"During that meeting, Mr. Hascall demonstrated his anger and frustration with the situation and the deceit on the part of Cooper," according to the lawsuit. "By letter dated Nov. 26, 2011, Mr. James Hascall had his visits to Thomas Paine Elementary School restricted by Cooper."

Vilma Hascall again requested a meeting with Cooper, her daughter's teacher, Williams, the police and the parents of the other girls, and again her request was denied.

Hascall told the Urbana school board about the issue during the board's Dec. 6 meeting.

"Parents of other children have stated that their children experienced bullying ... and when reported to Cooper, they were informed that the situation would be remedied, and appropriate discipline would be rendered," the suit states.

"However, these parents have stated that no discipline had been issued, and the bullying has not ceased."

The suit charges that Cooper failed to protect Hascall's daughter, failed to notify the parents of the girls allegedly bullying her daughter and disregarded complaints from Hascall and her daughter.

It charges that Williams failed to properly supervise Cooper and failed to notify the other girls' parents of the situation.

All these things caused Hascall's daughter to suffer physical injury, emotional distress and "diminished educational learning," according to the lawsuit. They also caused Hascall "to suffer mental anguish and significant emotional distress for the well-being of her child at school."

The lawsuit alleges the school board is liable for Cooper and Williams' behaviors and was "negligent in its supervision of the (superintendent)" by not enforcing the district's policies on bully prevention and student discipline.

School board President John Dimit said he was unaware of the lawsuit and would not comment on it.

Williams was out of the office Monday, and his office directed phone calls to Weedman.

Sounds like a bad situation, but I'm not sure suing the school district is really productive.

If you want to guarantee your child will not be bullied or harrassed, try home schooling. Most children are not sweet and innocent, but rather cruel and evil and they will be cruel and evil to each other no matter what.

Self-defense classes? Does anyone fight back against bullies anymore or do we just sue the school? Not trying to advocate violence but sometimes taking a stand is the only way to stop this crap. Of course I do not know all the circumstances. Hope this bullying stops for this girl. Good luck with your lawsuit.

Meanwhile the students that take a stand should be on the school staff "bad kid" list? You do realize that after so many suspentions for fighting that the kid will be expelled right? Than what are parents supposed to do? Bullying or not, if your kid attacks another kid, no matter the intent, its considered fighting in the eyes of 116.

Most of the local school districts around here seem to be under the impression that having a "policy" agains bullying is all that they need to do to make all of their troubles disappear. The problem with that approach is that they "talk the talk" but rarely, if ever "walk the walk". A few years ago, when my son was in Jr. High, he was involved in three separate incidents in which he got disciplined for retaliating against a tormenter. Each time, when we met with the Principal to discuss his actions, we were confronted by a teacher with a stupid look on their face, proclaiming that "they knew something was going on, but didn't realize it had gotten that far"....how lame. Quite frankly, from my personal experience, it appears that most teachers don't want to get involved. They seem to fall into three categories: (1) the new ones, who are afraid of making waves for fear of not getting tenure; (2) the ones who actually care and are willing to take action (about 5-10% of all teachers); and (3) the ones who are just waiting for retirement and have no desire to get involved. Additionally, the dirty little secret that the administrators and teachers don't want to discuss is this: The majority of the bullying is done by the "popular" kids.....you know, the ones with the wealthier, politically connected parents whose little angels never do anything wrong.

I wish this family luck. I was bullied for years at a local private school and nothing was ever done, it only continued to get worse. I was even told by one teacher I was a tattletale. My parents complained, nothing happened. There was a lot of discrimination when it came to who got what kind of treatment. It is sad to continue to see children experiencing this kind of pain after being made fully aware of what kind of results can come out of bullying. I hope they win their lawsuit and this school district (as well as others) begin to make more of an effort to end bullying in their schools.

My daughter attends this school. There have been maybe 2 times we've had to contact them because of issues with another student and several times we've contacted the school for other things. I have ALWAYS got a response the next day if not the same day. In one situation it was passed on to Ms. Cooper and she even called a week later to make sure the situation had been resolved.

I do think there was a problem in the classroom, but I also think there are 2 sides to every story. I would be SHOCKED to hear that the building did NOTHING in this situation. Details of discipline woudln't be shared with other parents anyway.

I find it telling that the parent involved in the lawsuit has been restricted from visiting the building. If there were issues with my child I would absolutely be doing everything I could to resolve the situation, but there are ways to deal with things and acting in such a way that you are restricted from visiting your childs school is not a way to show children how to act.

Exactly. I assume a parent would have to do something pretty outrageous to be restricted from their childs school.

I also think it's pretty telling that the parents aren't demanding action or change, they're demanding money. They didn't petition to have the girl attend another school. They didn't say that they addressed the issue with the bullies parents- which is definitely something I would do, had it been my child. They didn't request to attend the school with their child- again, something I would have done. They didn't go public with their fight against bullying, the way a Champaign mother recently did. They're not seeking real change, they're seeking their next pay check.

"They didn't petition to have the girl attend another school." Petition her daughter to go to another school? Do you have children in any school system? Do you know how hard it is for a child to change schools? ESPECIALLY when she has done nothing wrong? Why not petition for the 3 bullies to go to another school?

"They didn't say that they addressed the issue with the bullies parents- which is definitely something I would do, had it been my child." Really? Fill me in on what school is going to give you private information like that. They sure wouldn't give it to me (and I asked for it) when these same girls were bullying my daughter last year! Ms. Cooper wouldn't even set up a meeting with all the parents of the kids on both sides.

I don't know the details of petitioning to attend another school, but i'd imagine it's easier than filing suit against the school.

If your child is being bullied by the same group of kids, which i'm sorry to hear, what are YOU doing about it? I'm not sure how exactly i'd handle it, but I can guarantee I wouldn't be filing suit. Schools can only do so much to begin with. The parents are the real problem. And I'd either find a way to talk with those parents, remove my child from the hostile environment, or i'd be at that school, and calling every day ensuring changes were made. I've asked for change in other areas and been met with positive ideas and understanding. So I guess I'm just wondering who this lawsuit is going to benefit? Sounds like the benefit is for mom and dad.

I'm not supporting the bullying at all- which I think you're misinterpreting. It's unacceptable and shouldn't happen. But I don't believe this parents story either after my dealings with Mrs. Cooper.

Kel103 you obviously did not read the part where Mrs. Hascall requested for her daughter to be transfered to another classroom and was denied by Cooper and Dr. Williams. How else is she supposed to go public according to you? you seem to have all the answers!!!

I don't think i'm claiming to have all the answers. See my post where I say "I don't know exactly what I'd do in the situation."

All I can say is, again, I wouldn't be filing suit. Seems like a money-hungry thing to do. And it doesn't seem consistent with what I know about the principal.

I just can't see how a school who demands "respect, responsibility, and safety" of their students, leads bullying workshops, and has always been prompt in response to any issues with my child could have done what this parent alleges.

Anyway, I hope the bullying stops. I know kids can be brutal, and I hope that all of this will remind parents out there to talk to their kids about how important it is to treat people with respect.

I understand sueing all the above listed if nothing was ever done about the complaints. I do not know the full side of either's story. I do know that my son was relentlessly bullied in Urbana Schools, at times by the lunch monitors. Every time an issue was brought up to the Principal an effort was made to stop the harrassment. The parents of these bullies do not always follow through with punishment or even see what their child is doing is wrong. My son luckily goes to a wonderful school in Champaign now, I wish I knew what the difference between the Urbana Elementary Schools and the Champaign Elementary schools is in regards to how different the "bullying" is or lack there of. Kids will be kids and we can not shelter them from all bad things in life. but parents need to take the brunt of the responsiblitliy when it comes to the actions of their children (in most cases). Just an opinion folks.. No need to blast me!

My child goes to Thomas Paine, and my many interactions with Sandy Cooper have been nothing but pleasant and productive.

I'm sorry to hear that this child had a couple bad experiences, but I absolutely refuse to believe what this woman is alleging.

Mrs. Cooper demands respect of all students- that is the main theme of the entire school. She is also adament that school be a safe environment for all students. Personally, I've been on both ends of this. My child has been bullied, and has been the bully- as I believe all kids can be from time to time. When my child was bullied the situation was dealt with promptly, and appropriately and there have been no problems since. My child was sent home when she was the bully, and I received a phone call, as well as written documentation of the incident which was also sent to the superintendent.

Mrs. Cooper has met with me multiple times at 630 and 7 in the morning to ensure my child's success at school, and I have nothing but fantastic things to say about her and the way she handles Thomas Paine School.

I am disgusted to hear that a sue-happy mother is tarnishing the reputation of a wonderful principal just so she can make a few dollars.

Not all parents have had the same luck you had....I know several parents at Thomas Paine who have had the same issues, Mrs. Cooper does not like confrontations and it is a lot easier to just ignore the problem. I support this mother 100%. No child should have to go through this. Being trapped in the bathroom during an asthma attack goes beyond having a bad experience. Its about time for our schools to stand up and protect our children!

I am in no way involved in this situation, and my child is a few years younger. My only involvement is a parent who doesn't want to lose a great principal who has been instrumental in my childs' success at school thus far.

Bullying is a horrible situation to have your child go through. I've been there myself, and yes, it was the two most popular gilrs inflicting the bullying on my daughter. What I don't understand is why Vilma Hascall didn't contact the parents of the bullies herself? I also don't understand why a meeting with administrators and all parents involved was not scheduled.

My youngest son attended Urbana schools. When he was in the 5th grade, an older kid kept stealing his lunch money. I did not want to do it; but I taught him how to throw a compact punch. I told him to give up his lunch money the next time the bully threaten him; and stand in line behind the bully. It happened; and my son nailed the bully in the back of the head. Once the bully went down, my son kicked him as instructed. My wife, and I were summoned to the school. I explained that my son had repeatedly told the lunch supervisor, his teacher, and the principal about this repeatedly before the final incident. The principal's response to me was: "Middle Class people do not fight!" I explained to her that I grew up Blue Collar; and the only way to deal with bullies was to beat the bully out of them. After that, my son never had a problem with bullies; and he never bullied others. Sometimes, you have to fight. I am sure it is worse today than it was way back then.

If Vilma Hascall does not know the parent's name or where they live, how do you expect her to contact them? The school does NOT give out that information. My daughter went to Thomas Paine last year. She was bullied by the same girls that did this to Vilma's daughter. I went to Ms. Cooper repeatedly and she did nothing. Some people have commented that she does not like confrontation, and they are correct! She was going to "take care of it" by having an all-school assembly. What the heck will that solve? Her teacher did NOTHING & Ms. Cooper did NOTHING! My ex-husband and I were in her office repeatedly and also met with our daughter's teacher a few times. They were going to "keep an eye on it." What a crock! Like others on here, I told my daughter that I never want her to fight, but on the other hand, I never want her to be bullied time and time again. I told her if any of the girls put their hands on her then she needs to defend herself. One of them pushed my daughter one day on the playground so she pushed back and the girl fell to the ground. She did not get in trouble because NO ONE "supervising" the kids saw it. The girls never touched my daughter again, but some of the bullying continued with 2 of the 3 girls. The other girl wanted to be my daughters "friend" and you know what my response to that was. As far as the bullies parents....well, let me put it this way...it's a learned behavior. So I am fully behind the Hascall's. One more thing.....my daughter's teacher that she had last year was fired! Someone, somewhere, sometime is going to have to stand up for these kids while they are at school. Maybe they should have and all-teacher/faculty assembly and have parents come and talk about the effect it has had on their child/ren that was bullied????

I have had children in Thomas Paine for a long time. In my experience, Sandra Cooper is a pleaser, She will do anything and say anything to make everyone happy. There are very few consequences for breaking the rules at Thomas Paine. The consequences vary from child to child and family to family. When sent to "refocus" as in school detention they have donuts and play games. Lots of kids enjoy going there. That said, bullying is a tough thing to battle but when a child doesn't want to go to school anymore and is having physical symptoms, something needs to be done. Personally, I've been in to see Ms. Cooper and Preston Williams regarding the safety of the students in that school with no success. I keep very close tabs on my kids and ask lots of questions. Kids and schools need structure and consistency and rules in order to keep everyone safe, same as society. Why is that hard for people to see.

I find it appalling that most of the above 'comments' blame the parents of the victim or advise on homeschooling the victim. OBVIOUSLY, you are the parents of the bullies! Your children have NO RIGHT to harass another child, and if you, as their parents, don't get them in check soon, they might run into someone who isn't going to take it. Most school shootings are the result of bullies pushing a kid too far. Most child suicides are the result of bullies going to far. If my child was bullied for years and the school did NOTHING, my actions might have me 'restricted' from the school.

This is just a bit of advice to all the ignorant parents raising bullies....why don't you yank your kids out of school and homeschool them so the schools are safer for everyone else!

You could not be further from the truth with your post. I teach my child respect, with consequences for disrespect, and expect that respect be given in return. And Thomas Paine, and Mrs. Cooper particularly, demand the same. This has been one of my favorite aspects of this school- it's committment to instilling respect in young kids- some of whom don't learn it at home.

I'm not raising a bully, but i'm not raising a money hungry child with a "sue-sue-sue" mentality either.

I'm commenting from a parents point of view that has dealt with Mrs. Cooper many times-both positively and negatively- and believe that she would not let this type of bullying go on. You didn't cite any experience with this school, so I assume you're basing your post solely on the one sided information in the article?

If this little girl is in distress, I truly hope that the situation is resolved, and the parents of these bullies get involved and teach their children the right way to behave.

Did you ever stop to think that Mrs Cooper did NOTHING to help these people and that's why they are suing? A few other comments above claim the same thing about her....she did nothing to stop a bad situation and her actions made it worse. My Great-niece went to Thomas Paine and had problems with bullies, and the principal did nothing in that situation also.

I can't explain why the principal is responsive to a select few parents and ignores the rest. Maybe if we knew the answer to that, there wouldn't be such a problem in that school.

If you aren't raising a bully, then good for you. If you are raising a bully but are blind to that fact, then I pity you. If you are aware that your child is a bully but do nothing about it, then Child Protective Services should be called!

**DISCLAIMER** In my last paragraph, I use the word 'you' as a generic word and it is not directed at anyone. I'd hate to be falsely accused of cyber-bullying.

That's weird her mom has been looking pretty pleased coming out of the school, even smiling since she called the police a few months back. And I was at the Bully session held at the Shool last Thursday, But I sure didn't see here or her child there. And as a matter of fact when the bully discussion was held last year I don't remember seeing her there either. But I am sure she was doing her very best with the situation.

LBrooks do you know the reason why she didn't go to the bullying workshop? or why she might seen happy, maybe she was pretending to be happy, have you seen her engaged in any happy conversations with the principal or the superintendent or was she being happy because she was talking to someone else and she was being friendly?? get your facts straight before you go and make assumptions!!

I surely hate when people try to enrich themselves with our HARD EARNED TAX DOLLARS...If you agree please post if you disagree do so...comments are appreciated...no personal attacks please..but in general...